Literary Onomastics Studies
Volume 12
Article 13
1985
Runic Mysticism and Names in Beowulf
David L. Deratzian
Temple University
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Recommended Citation
Deratzian, David L. (1985) "Runic Mysticism and Names in Beowulf," Literary Onomastics Studies: Vol. 12, Article 13.
Available at: http://digitalcommons.brockport.edu/los/vol12/iss1/13
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LOS 119
RUNIC MYSTICISM AND THE NAMES IN BEOWULF
David L. Deratzian
Temple University
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
When we set out to consider how names are used
in literature.
one technique that can be applied
to break the name down
into components.
ls
and analyze
the meanings that the components have in other languages,
thereby producing a sort of composite of the character
to whom the name is assigned.
However.
there is a deeper
structure available to the onomastic analyst than the
Here,
morpheme.
I
will suggest that in the cases of
certain alphabetic systems.
have not. yet
those sufficiently old to
lost thejr attached mnemonjc devices.
as Babylonian,
certain Semitic languages,
such
and Runic,
words and names can be analyzed through these mnemonic
devices.
It is the
latter system,
Runic,
that will
now be explored.
Analysis of names :hrough letter values is hardly
a new idea.
Those interested in the occult or mystical
studies are familiar with at least two such methods:
acrophonology and numerology.
are replaced wlth numbers,
a composil.<' number
is
person's character
type.
ology,
In the
latter case,
letters
and through a snries of calcui<Jt.ions.
round
that is s<1icl
The
t.o
clcf"ine
former practice,
replaces letters wjth zodidcal
signs,
l.tH'
acrophon-
and through
LOS 120
traditional astrological interpretation,
analyzed.
The method that I
the name is
am suggesting is to replace
letters with their original equivalents,
analyze the name using the mystical
and then to
meanings assigned
to them by the original users of the alphabet.
case,
for
purpose of illustration,
the names in Beowulf
will be transliterated into Runic glyphs,
complete the task,
given,
In this
and
then to
the mystical reading of the names will be
applying the indivjdual runes to the character's
nature.
Runes were the alphabetic
ple of medieval Scandinavia.
system used by the peo­
Norse mythology tells
us that the Runes were discovered by the god Odin as
he hung from the Yggdrasil,
the tree that supports the
earth. 1 According to the Poetic Edda,
once Odin had
found the Runes,
bondage,
he was released
from
and in
the words of the Poetic Edda:
Well being I
won
And wisdom too.
I grew and took joy in my growth:
From a word to a word
I
was led to a word.
2
So the Runic glyphs not only originated at the base
of the earth,
but also were viewed as
dom and wisdom.
the route to free­
LOS 121
In terms of historical origin,
the runes were pro-
bably the work of one person attempting to devise a
form of written language for his people,
much as the
Bishop Wulfila would do with Gothic in the Fourth
century.3 But runes are probably older than Gothic,
since runes were actually used as part of the basis
4
The Goths had
and incorporated into it.
of Gothic,
runes long before Wulfila,
work at hand,
and since Beowulf is the
it is not inappropriate to mention that
the people whom we know as the Goths,
we know as the Geats,
and
those whom
were probably Lhc same people;
the name change possibly the result of a rune whose
phonemic value changed from /i/ in Old English,
/au/ in Middle and Modern English.
The term
which means
"runes"
to
5
comes from the Low G�rman rounen
''to cut. "6 The word later wenL into Gothic
as !J!.!2Q. meaning_"mystery."
But one thing that we cnn
be almosL certain of is that the runes were noL aL
all
mysterious to the people who inhabited Scandinovia and
the British
lsles.
Lhe pooplo,
not
men;
Runes was an alphabcLic system of
just of the
ledrned scribes and holy
a divining tool usable by all. 'l This is where the
mystery comes in.
marily
Jiterary purposes.
Germania,
TaciLus tells us.
in his
of their common use and familiar1Ly,
that rune cuttings
impromptu,
Jor prl-
for Runes were not designed
done by
(from hewn tree
an yon e
Limbs)
reporting
were often
who requJred them.
He also
LOS 122
tells us that most males eventually learned to divine
using runes,
hold. a
for lt became their duty as head of a house­
Runes came to serve the same function that
the Tarot did
in Southern and Eastern Europe,
the I Ching did
in the Orient.
Runes also provided
a means for making charms for the users,
of
inscriptions on seals,
and tha"'
cups,
weapons,
in the forms
and oLhcr com-
mon articles.
The word
"runes" also has another mea nin g,
the
name given to council meetings and secret gatherings.
The Wanderer attests to this use of the term
in Old
English:
gesaet un
'
Swa cwaer
snotter onmode,
sunder aet rune,
and it will
be remembered that in Reowulf,
was Hrothgar's "runvlta."
rt is probable that
Aeschcre
9
Lhe alphabetic use of
known to Old English srribes,
since
the rune�
O
became part of the early English alphabet. l
runes was
J·
It
and
�
is
equally probable that the mystical use was also welJ
known.
After the Anglo-Saxon occupation of Britain,
it is assumed that the Drui.ds adapted the Runes to their
own purposes.
When Britain was later Chr.i.stianized
the Druids were driven into seclusion
by St.
Columba,
on
is l a n d s of
the
same
Tona and J\ng lessey.
r .ater.
islands would also bo CtH·ist.ioni?.ed. 11
Oru ids,
tho only
d bori g
ina l
occupants,
th es('
c�J\d Lhe
wou I d bccom<"'!
LOS 12J
the sc ribes.
Of c ourse,
died away,
the
Old Religion must not have just
for even today we see remnants in such act-
ivities as may-poles,
and also,
no new religion has
ever c ompletely wiped out all traces and aspects of
an existing one.
Part of that which survived was some-
thing that had already been partially adopted into English c ulture,
through its script:
the Runes.
we had were Christian scribes (former Druids),
So,
whRt
one of
in
whom might have composed
(set to wriLing)
the midlands of England,
which c oincidentally lie very
close to the island of Anglessey.
Beowulf
12
There are t\.Jenty-eight Anglo-Saxon runes that were
in use in the
ninth c entury,
when Beowulf was probab-
ly c o mposed.
The runes c omprise the futhorc,
the name
given to the system and derived from the names of the
first six runes: feoh,
ur, thorn,
In addition to the phon�mic
values,
mnemonic value given to each;
the rune represented.
os,
rad,
and cin.
there was also a
a word or concept that
It is likely,
values were something more than
however,
that these
merely mnemonic,
for
each was given a name that embodied some ideal of the
Anglo-Saxon mythos.
13
LOS 124
The rune poem is the
and the source from which
meaning of each rune.
body of
I
mnemonic definitions,
have drawn 'the mystical
Here is the Anglo-Saxon rune
poem:
�
feoh
Wealth is a comfort to all men.
Yet everyone must give it away freely
If he wants to gain glory
In the Lord's sight.
ur
The aurochs, a very savage beast,
Is fierce and has huge horns.
A qreat roamer of the moorlands
tt fights with its horns.
It is a courageous brute.
A thorn is extremely sharp.
Grabbing hold of it is painful to any warrior,
Unco�nonly severe to anyone
/> lorn
Who lies among them.
OS
rad
cen
X
gyfu
The origin of all speech,
The prop of wisdom and the comfort of the wise,
And a joy and consolation to every man.
In the hall rad is pleasant for every warrior,
And energetic for the man
Who sits on the back of a powerful horse
Covering the mile-lonq roads.
Cen is known to all living beings by its flame
Pale and bright.
Most often it nurns
Where princes are staying.
Men's generosity
ts a grace and an honor,
A support and a glory,
And a help and sustenance
To any outcast who is deprived of them.
LOS
J>
Joyful is the man who knm..ra no miseries,
Affliction or sorrow,
And who has prosperity and happine�s,
And the wealth of great towns.
wynn
N
125
Hail is the whitest of grains.
It swirls from the heights of heaven,
And gusts of wind toss it about.
Then it turns
water.
haegl
to
''/-...
Affliction constricts the heart,
nyd
But it often serves as a help
And salvation to the sons of men.
lf they attend to it in time.
lee is very cold, extremely slippery.
A floor fair
the sight,
Made by the frost,
is
to
Glitters
clear as glass.
A year of good harvest is a joy to men.
ger
When God, holy king of heaven,
makes the earth give forth
Br1ght fruits for rich and poor.
A tree with rough bark,
coh
peor.�
like jewels,
Hardy and firm jn the earth,
Supported by its roots, the guardian of
And a pleasure upon an estate.
r
Peorth is a continual
source of
flame,
amusement
And laughter for the great
Where warric�s sit together ln the beer hall.]
eolhx
Sedge grass wh'�h usually lives jn a fen,
Growing in the water.
lt wounds severely, staining with blood
Any man who makes a grab of it.
'
7
sigel
The sun is a continual joy to seamen,
When they take the sea=steed
Over the fish' s bath
Unti l it brings them to land.
LOS 126
tir
beorc
h
e.
Tir is one of the guiding marks.
It keeps its faith well with princes.
Above night's clouds it js always on its path
And never fails.
Beare has no fruit, yet without seeds
It is glorious
It produces shoots.
In its branches, tall in its crown, fairly adorned,
Heavy with leaves, reaching to the sky.
The horse, the charger proud on its hoofs,
Is the prince' s delight in the presence of warriors,
When rich men on horseback discuss its points.
For the restless it is always a source of re­
laxation.
man
In his mirth man is dear to his kinsman.
Yet each is bound to fail his fellow
�ecause the Lord, by his decree,
Wishes to commit
lagu
Wuter
�eems
interminable
body to the earth.
to men
If they have to venture on the rolling ship,
And the sea-waves scare them out of their wits,
And the
lng
the wretched
surf-horse does not respond to its bridJe.
Ing was the first seen by men among the EastDanes,
Until he travelled eastQ across the wave.
His chariot followed on.
His is what the Heardins called the hero.
dqeg The day, dear to men, is the Lord's gift,
The Creator's glorious light.
It is a joy &�d solace to rich and poor,
And useful to ev�ryone.
The ancestral home is dear to every
If in his house there he can enjoy
What is right and decent
In continual prosperity.
The
Also "back. ''
east (est), or back
o
man,
word est can be read as el therScho l ars differ on thi.s point.
(eft).
LOS
pi
ac
The oak feeds the pig for meot for
1.27
the sons
of men.
It often journeys over ganne�s bath.
The ocean tests whether
The oak keeps honorable faith.
�
aesc
The ash, precious to men,
Is very tall.
Firm on its base, it keeps its place securely
Though many men attack i·t.
yr
Yr is a piece of war gear,
Jt is a pleasure and adornment to
All
princes and warriors,
fjnc on a
horse
And firm on a journey.
ear
Ear is hateful to everyman, when the flesh,
The pallid body, begins jncxorably Lo grow cold,
To choose the earth as jts consort.
Prosperity fades,
joys pass away, covenants
lapse.
Usjng the mystical values,
consideration of the names.
runology,
According to students of
understanding,
reading the
runes from right to
to separat(:)
L.hE� use or
their
.
use as t1n
''Beowulf,"
from
·
f'
we may now pnss to a
such inquiries into the fates of men,
pretation for metaphysical
Jeft
��
system.
Lo
' B.
is pr·obably
the name
wouJd bl�
read
•
To begin this study,
Old English for
by
PIH'posos from
Henc0,
for interpretive purposes,
or inter-
is done
Thj�
runes for r·ituaJ
alphabcLic
14
let us consider a
which the meaning is known:
word from
wergild,
the payment exacted by a bereaved person from Lho offender,
both to satisfy the family of the dead
man.
and to restore
LOS 128
honor to the killer.
and "money"
(�).
word are:
(wynn),
f>
rune of ancestry;
(gyfu),
sti 11
Wergild has the roots
The seven runes that spell
the rune of
1<.
(rad),
the rune of giving;
or ice;
/'
(lagu),
the rune of day�6
''man"
joy;
�
the
(e6el),
�he
the rune of journey;
Cis),
J
(wer)
/<
the rune of stand­
the rune of water;
Reading from right to
and
left,
H
(daig).
we see
the events that made up a wergild.
First,
the rune of day had the connotrttion of a
gift from god;
another day of life,
Following is the rune of water,
the offender
in this case from Jife.
is standstill, ice,
the period wherein
is dissociated from his people,
that his sins will
ice represents
Jife.
which the rune poem
defines as a sort of transition,
Following this
and therefore,
be visited upon them.
for
fear
The rune of
lhe powerlessness that precedes rebirth,
in t!!is case granted in the second half of the tvord.
Gyfu,
to as a
the rune o{ giving,
which the rune poem refers
''help and sustet.ance to an outcast,"
what must be done
tells us
in order to remedy the situation,
and the rune of riding that folJows tells us of what
must have been a difficult journey to complete,
del ivcr·y or
Lhn wer·gtld.
and
�he ancestral home and
"wynn,''
Ttle
JasL L��>JO runes,
JOY,
�ell
the
"c¢cl"
or
the
LOS 129
decency that is restored to the home and to the family
of the offender by the wergild.
Tt will
be remembered
that it was in t"lis way that Beowulf's father \vas restored
to an honorable position.
As can be seen,
then,
the
runjc transliteration approach to understandinq does
not fall very far short of accurate definition,
a more thorough explication.
Now,
lf not
on to the names.
For the purposes of this paper,
I have chosen five
names from Beowulf:
two pairs that are compared in the
poem,
The name
and Grendel.
(8),
the runes beorc
of fertility;
the rune of the birch tree,
(M),
eh
the horse.
os
course of the sun;
of divine utterance;
transition;
(�).
\.;ynn
rune of manly st.rC'nqth;
and
'Beowulf' is composed of
lagu
and feoh
associated with the
the rivermouth,
(1>),
the rune of
C"),
(�).
a symbol
a source
joy;
Cf))
ur
rune of fertility
rune of possessions and
wealth.
Reading from ri��t to left,
painted.
We know that ·le was,
we find Beowulf's life
during his early life,
Through his first act
a lazy and worthless young man.
,.
of bravery,
the contest with Breca, Beowulf
sacrificed
his earthly possessions as the rune poem dictates
und undergoes
<Hld
.1
rc�born (!').
first in crossinq
in water· l.o ::>lay
LcsL of water,
thus
'lis latertrials
representing the aurochs,
being cleansed
also involve water,
to challenge Grendel,
cr·endel 's dam,
(P)
and later actunlJy
The rune of strength,
a beasL with huge horns,
describes
LOS 130
Beowulf's fighting technique,
for,
like the aurochs,
Beowulf prefers to fight with only his natural resources,
as he did with the sea beasts and Grendel.
After his return to Geatland and Hygelac's defeat,
the rune of joy governs Beowulf's life,
allowing him
to boast at the last that during his reign he had warred
on no man.
The rune of the rivermouth now provides,
as the rune poem states,
Beowulf with Odin,
comfort to all.
through the Norwegian
os as ass,which was the rune of Odin.
It also allies
reading of
This is of course
consistent with the Old English rune poem 's reading
of �,
since the riven10uth there is qiven as the source
of divine utterance,
the greatest of all
of the day,
and Odin is thought to have been
gods
�7
The rune of the horse,
emphasizes the pleasure of his reign,
bringer
analo-
gized with the joy experienced at each new daybreak
J-iiz
last trial is
no rune,
by fire,
but his fjnaJ
Beowulf wilJ
an element for which he has
rune of the birch
have a svccessor,
known descendants.
•.
provides that
even though he has no
Wtglaf follows Beowulf,
even as the fruit of the birch tree,
arising
without the seed
of the parent tree.
In the poem,
Hyge1ac counsels Beowulf not to become
LOS 131
like Heremod,
character.
and so offers a contrast to Beowulf's
'Here-mod' means ' battle-heart, ' as compared
with ' Beo- wulf, ' meaning 'bee-wolf'
or ' bear. '
The sevenlrunes in 'Heremod'
of prosperity and fruitfulness
(daig
,14),
show a man
but who was
as Loki _ (using the heathen rendering of os)
corrupted,
as the god Loki,
man (man,
(or like a wolf)
M),
in Christian mythology)
or Satan,
as the rune poem says is inevitable,
pV
toward
since
His ancestral home
one man will always fail another.
rune (e¢el, �)' has the opposite meaning
of Beowulf ' s,
for what is decent and right is not enjoyed in his home,
as the rune poem defines
Q
,
We will later see again
that runes are not predestinations,
but rather two-edged
swords that can turn on those who possess them.
journey rune (rad,R) is a difficult one,
the road,
secc,..1d
for he became the most hated
present in his life.
and his
the disharmony
His final rune of hail (haig,H)
points up his destruct�ve nature,
hail,
one spent on
of
·
men,
rune of ancestral home emphasizes
Heremod's
Heremod's reign was short,
and also that like
and melted away leaving
little trace (as history is rendered by the scop in
18
line 1751).
Heremod is Beowulf ' s perfect anti-type as can be
seen
in a side-by- side comparison of the transliterations'
LOS 132
�
(.C)
Growth
M
Movement
�
Divine Guidance
j:f
Disruption
�
Ancestral Home
�
Hard Journey
p
Joy
�
Home
f)
Strength
M
Failing Man
f'
Fertility
�
Wealth
u:v
(disharmony)
p
Demonic
t<f
Prosperity
guidance
Note that both begin with runes of prosperity
contain runes of godly influence
to a different end
(C).
{disharmony)
(8),
(A)
and
but each comes
Note also that the guidance
comes from different sources.
Grendel presents a somewhat troublesome name to
ana 1 yze.
home k,
The seven ru.Yles are those of water
day rl,
nnd qivingX .
constraint 1",
What we
useiul
to aJl,
ancestral home � ,
find is fertiliLy,
dear when right and decent,
a salvation
�
ancestral
journey
something
a gift of the Lord to be
if attended to.
someLhing
difficult on the road but pleasant on the hearth,
sustenance to an outcasc.
but as suggested above,
R,
and
Most of these sound positive,
runes cut with both edges,
present­
ing conditions that must be fulfilled in order to realize
the positive.
The water is probably the mere, that which spawned
Grend<' I,
and hls home cannot be enjoyed,
for what is
LOS
within
right nor decent.
is neither
be a salvation
for he
properJy attended
Grendel canneL
is a n outcast and
to.
133
Once at tendea
no t
therefore
by Beowulf,
however,
men are saved.
As
that
for
the
Grendel's
journey rune
journey
poe t might have
"
be on the
reflected in
The second
but to
"hnll-quard.''
to
when
The pun could
t !10 run<' poem,
notion or
the home
hear·Ul
less
t1
the previous rune ol
for
p1PclS<1n t rd<W<',
ancestral
home.
refers then not t.o Grenda l' s abode,
Rpprooch,
has
aueen,
ct
u�·:�r-
name
"Lt1oua h
medn.t ng of.
b�)cnuse it
that,
in addition
t
eomc�s
,
"?O
and
An
one,
Heardred
go
t,heir
to
gjft
(� ),
rrom god
(�
one that would n o t
),
allow
(
qr-acc,
clnd ;-t soi<JcC'
but
off o n an un�isP campaiqn
1i ves
Hyqde
a
liL<!rnJ
t.o mcnn c:1 p 1 .1ce wh.1 c t'
adornment of princes
destructive
t.o its
is r ighL .:.md decen t
( ./ ) ;
trans-
Hyqe 1 <H'' s
we f j nd that. Hygde,
t1ono r and su s te n an c e
end
1''
akin
con tinue the examples or the us� of the
l i tero t ion
CW ) ;
buL herP the
Heorot.
To
is
�
is an easy one.
home"
.:dso rndkOS
Gnmdol
ns
as
e<lSY nL
it cannot be said
flcxinq a wi t ticism
been
he n am ed Gren-del
(R:),
a
a��idcdly
HygeJac
and
that would
t:4 ) .
is contrasted by the po0L
WI
t:h
anoU1cr
queen
LOS 134
whose name was Modthrytho,
Loki
(
f::!t).
princes C
( p),
'l
giants and demons
( f7),
an adornment of
),
C
demons reiterated
a hard journey
joy and solace
provided).
which has the element of
Cri
�),
,which we are told she falsely
Loki reiterated
(�),
and man
ctq
),
with the tendency to fail
others.
common runes are present:
adornment of princes,
of the day;
joy and solace.
again
Note again that
and
Both Modt,hry lho and
1-Iyqde
have these elements which one m iqht. assume mad C:) thE-�m
good queens and consorts,
but.. Modthryt..ho chosf�
Lo usn
hers to gain control to attain her goals.
Although I
five names,
have limited this consideration to
suffice it to say that thts system provides
similar results when applied to the other names in
the poem.
This analysis by phoneme seems also,
and
l take tJd s on faith from those who have s Lud jed more
intensJvely,
employinq
to work with other �lphubcLic sysLems,
L.heir
undorlyinq
mysticism.
There rniqhL
be those who would criticize this mett10d ns Loo unsci<m-
Lific
n
met..hod of·
lit� ary or philological onaJysis,
but it does tend to shed a new light on old names.
perhaps the very
to reveal,
light that the writers of old wanted
and the same light seen by their readers,
nnd hrnrd by Lhe
listeners of
the bnrds.
r t L<•nds
to contribute to how we understand the ])Lerature of
Lho pracliLioners of the old wnys .
David L. ucratzi�n
Temple University
Philadelphia, PA
LOS 135
NOTES
1
Hilda Radzin,"Names in the Mythological Lay Vol upsa,"
Literary Onomastic Studies,
2
Ralph Blum,
Press,
3
4
5
Ralph W.V.
8
9
10
11
p.
St.
Martin's
11.
Elliot,
Enq.:
Runes:
An Introduction
1 959),
Manchester University Press,
R. I.
An Introduction to English Runes
Page,
1973),
Lewis Spence,
p.
8lum,
p.
24.
Blum,
p.
2'/
Beowulf,
An Encyl copedia of Occul tism
Elliot.,
( giscussing
1.
Inc. ,
Tacitus,
1960),
s. v.
"Teutons. "
Germa.nja X).
1325.
p. 45.
Bulfinch's Mythology
362.
(London:
85.
(New York: University Books,
7
(New York:
45.
Methuen,
6
1 984.
p. 12.
(Manchester,
p.
The Book of Runes
1932), p.
lbjd. ,
XI:93-97,
(New York:Avenel Books,
197 9),
LOS
12
136
Norton Anthology of English Literature, M.H.
13
14
15
16
p.
Page,
Norton & Co.,
W.W.
(New York:
1979),
Ibid., pp.
31.
Blum, p.
The transl1teration method employed here was set
v.
l,
1932.
Radzin,
p.
95.
English,
"A System of Transliteration
(Copenhagen, Baltimore and London:
and Bagger, 1963),
and Bagger,
1951);
The Thorkelin Transcripts
and Julius Zupitza,
Oxford University Press,
Chickering,
(New York:
20
Leeds Studies in
The text of the poem is a compilation from the
Nowell Codex
19
25.
73-85.
for Old English Runic Inscriptions, ''
18
1:
75.
out by Bruce Dickens in
17
v.
Abrams,ed.
Jr·.,
pp.
6-7.
(Rosenkilde
(London:
printed in Howell D.
A Dual-Language Edition
Anchor Press,�oubleday,
Chickering,
Ibid.
Beowulf:
1959),
Beowulf
Rosenkilde
1977).